Especially down here in Florida just about every afternoon at close to the same time the wind dies. One reason we chose the TI over the h16 or wave was the ability to pedal back to shore if the wind dies, well the versatility and ability to use on small rivers and fishing, diving,adventuring was also a big factor. You can use the adventure boats for just about anything I have been able to think of. But that's not the point I'm trying to make. My opinion is the wave, H16, getaway,and especially the new T2 would greatly benefit from a swing down mirage drive option. I have seen several hobiecats with swing down kicker motors. The mirage drive would be mounted in a similar swing down bracket. Think about it if there is no wind your only other choice is to paddle with your hands (like I used to do with my sunfish) or a paddle, neither option is fun. Another thing I have seen a lot of cats working very hard to get in and out of the local harbor because the island, and all the big sail boats block the wind. The mirage drive weighs about 6 lbs, so it's not like having to haul around a 40 lb motor. And it is also cheaper. If racing, you would just leave it in the car of course. It would certainly make the wave, t2 or getaway more versatile as family fun boats. Now here is the kicker, which would set hobiecats apart from anything else out on the water. That same swing down motor mount will also easily fit an evolve electric propulsion system. There would be no day you can't go out on any hobiecat product. My current TI is setup for power sailing giving me unbelievable performance even in very low wind conditions. That's on a boat with a not so great hull design, and not enough sail area. Just imagine the performance you would get with low drag cat hulls and giant sails. I know a little about this stuff, and looking at the specs on the t2 I see no reason you couldn't power sail in very low winds (under 5mph) using under 120 watts of power with the evolve in excess of ten mph regardless of wind direction ( you create your own apparent wind when power sailing) so the actual wind direction doesn't matter ( you can also sail almost directly into the wind as well. As soon as the wind picks back up, you simply turn it off and raise it out of the water. The entire evolve system only weighs 15 lbs so it's not breaking the bank weight wise, and could be just stored on the boat for emergency power when not being used. The best part for Hobie is their mirage drive and evolve system are heavily covered by their patents, so they would be truly unique in the market place. Plus there would be a huge revenue stream from existing hobiecat users wanting the upgrade option. With the mirage drive safety option, the only time it would be used would be for drivin in harbors, and getting out and back in no wind (irons) so it wouldn't be a big deal if the peddler is facing backwards. The new t2 would be particularly attractive because ther is lots if room in front of the sail to string a solar panel between the longer hulls ( for the evolve as an option). Plus both the mirage and evolve would be fantastic for moving around busy boat docks, harbors, and marinas. On the intercoastal there are many very narrow channels and inlets there are very difficult to negotiate. If you live on one of those canals, and have a dock, it's sometimes a 1/4 mile to get out to open water, I do it with my TI all the time (go thru canals, like the one in Key Largo to get from the gulf to the atlantic), it would be really hard to sail thru there, but the mirage drive and/or motor (evolve or small hybrid gas) makes it painless. Am I the only one who thinks about this stuff..... Bob
Last edited by fusioneng on Thu Sep 12, 2013 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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